Nigeria Spends N1.26Trillion On Debt Servicing In Two Months

Nigeria spent $817.4 million (approximately N1.26 trillion) on debt servicing in the first two months of 2025, representing a 3.12 percent decline compared to the $843.73 million spent in the same period in 2024.

 

Data from the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) International Payments Report shows that the federal government spent $540.7 million on debt servicing in January 2025 and $276.7 million in February 2025.

 

In total, Nigeria allocated $3.81 billion (about N5.9 trillion) for debt servicing in 2024.

 

This comes as the federal government unveiled its highest national budget in 65 years, with a proposed N54.99 trillion spending plan—a 56.89 percent increase from the N35.05 trillion budgeted in 2024, including supplementary allocations.

 

President Bola Tinubu described it as the “Budget of Restoration,” aimed at stabilising the economy and fostering growth.

 

Debt servicing accounts for a significant portion of the 2025 budget, with N16.3 trillion allocated—marking a 95 percent increase from the N8.25 trillion in 2024.

 

Meanwhile, Nigeria’s foreign trade in Letters of Credit (LC) payments, a key indicator of the country’s creditworthiness and import trade volume, declined slightly by 0.55 percent year-on-year to $160 million in the first two months of 2025 from $160.9 million in the corresponding period last year.

 

For the entire year 2024, LC payments stood at $801.06 million, reflecting a 39 percent drop from $1.32 billion recorded in 2023.